// In CMainWindow's message map ON_WM_LBUTTONDOWN () ON_WM_LBUTTONUP () void CMainWindow::OnLButtonDown (UINT nFlags, CPoint point) { SetCapture (); } void CMainWindow::OnLButtonUp (UINT nFlags, CPoint point) { ::ReleaseCapture (); }
In between, CMainWindow receives WM_MOUSEMOVE messages that report the cursor position even if the cursor leaves it. Client-area mouse messages continue to report cursor positions in client coordinates, but coordinates can now go negative and can also exceed the dimensions of the window's client area.
A related function, CWnd::GetCapture, returns a CWnd pointer to the window that owns the capture. In the Win32 environment, GetCapture returns NULL if the mouse is not captured or if it's captured by a window belonging to another thread. The most common use of GetCapture is for determining whether your own window has captured the mouse. The statement
if (GetCapture () == this)
is true if and only if the window identified by this currently has the mouse captured.
How does capturing the mouse solve the problem with the rubber-banded line? By capturing the mouse in response to a WM_LBUTTONDOWN message and releasing it when a WM_LBUTTONUP message arrives, you're guaranteed to get the WM_LBUTTONUP message when the mouse button is released. The sample program in the next section illustrates the practical effect of this technique.
void CMainWindow::OnLButtonDown (UINT nFlags, CPoint point)
{
//
// Record the anchor point and set the tracking flag.
//
m_ptFrom = point;
m_ptTo = point;
m_bTracking = TRUE;
//
// If capture is enabled, capture the mouse.
//
if (m_bCaptureEnabled)
SetCapture ();
}
void CMainWindow::OnMouseMove (UINT nFlags, CPoint point)
{
//
// If the mouse is moved while we're "tracking" (that is, while a
// line is being rubber-banded), erase the old rubber-band line and
// draw a new one.
//
if (m_bTracking) {
CClientDC dc (this);
InvertLine (&dc, m_ptFrom, m_ptTo);
InvertLine (&dc, m_ptFrom, point);
m_ptTo = point;
}
}
void CMainWindow::OnLButtonUp (UINT nFlags, CPoint point)
{
//
// If the left mouse button is released while we're tracking, release
// the mouse if it's currently captured, erase the last rubber-band
// line, and draw a thick red line in its place.
//
if (m_bTracking) {
m_bTracking = FALSE;
if (GetCapture () == this)
::ReleaseCapture ();
CClientDC dc (this);
InvertLine (&dc, m_ptFrom, m_ptTo);
CPen pen (PS_SOLID, 16, RGB (255, 0, 0));
dc.SelectObject (&pen);
dc.MoveTo (m_ptFrom);
dc.LineTo (point);
}
}